They
could take the bullets, but not the neglectNew Delhi, January 24The five Delhi policemen, who
sustained serious injuries while trying to foil the terrorists’
attempt to sneak into Parliament a month ago, are now recuperating in
isolation. They are virtually forgotten. There has been little financial
assistance and support either from the force or government agencies. The
four Delhi Police personnel, who were injured and admitted to the RML
Hospital, are footing the bill for their treatment from their own
limited resources.

New
DVB mantra: Be consumer-friendlyNew Delhi, January 24With a month to go for the
privatisation of the power distribution sector in the National Capital
Territory, the Delhi Vidyut Board is embarking on a major
consumer-friendly exercise and the state government is finalising plans
for mega power projects in the neighbouring states.

No
strand of history has been diluted, says NCERTNew Delhi, January 24Taking exception to media reports
that Medieval History has been diluted in the recently released syllabi,
the NCERT Director, Prof. J.S. Rajput, termed the allegations as
incorrect.

Lottery
stockists cry foul against Gurgaon cops Gurgaon, January 24The stockists of lotteries,
operating in Gurgaon city, are extremely agitated over the alleged
police crackdown during business hours on January 16, causing the
members of their fraternity and the customers considerable harassment.

Capital
is under siege, biggest deployment everNew Delhi, January 24In the backdrop of the terrorist
attack on Parliament last year and in Kolkata recently, the Delhi
Police have deployed 10,000 additional paramilitary forces to ensure
safe conduct of the Republic Day parade and other related
celebrations.

Humanity
at its callous bestJhajjar, January 24The death of an ill-fated couple
in an accident on Tuesday night on the Jhajjar-Delhi Road near Noona-Majra
village of the district, diminished humanity at large. Darshna Devi
and her husband Jai Singh lost their lives, leaving their two kids
behind. The accident exposed the waning human values and the lack of
respect for life in society.

MCF
panels dissolvedFaridabad, January 24The Mayor, Mrs Anita Goswami, has
dissolved all the 11 committees of the Municipal Corporation,
Faridabad, constituted by the previous mayor about 17 months ago.

Farmers
told to switch over to cash cropsSonepat, January 24The Haryana Financial
Commissioner-cum-Agriculture Secretary, Mr Naseem Ahmad, inaugurated an
agricultural training camp at the farm of Mr Ramesh Dagar, former
chairman of the Sonepat Zila Parishad. More than 1,500 farmers and
members of the Kisan clubs are participating in the camp near Shafiabad
village, 8 km from here, yesterday.

PARADISE LOST: A float of Jammu & Kashmir at the dress rehearsal of Republic Day Parade in the Capital on Wednesday.

THAPPATAM: This folk dance is performed by men in Tamil Nadu. The dancers beat the thappu and perform the dance during fairs and festivals. It will be a part of the Republic Day folk dance festival at Talkatora Stadium in the Capital on Thursday.
— Tribune Photo Mukesh Aggarwal

Home
Guards in Republic Day parade after 16 yearsNew Delhi, January 24Dressed in khaki, Berry cap and
white sleeves with red cuffs and white gloves - ready to fight for you
in an emergency. Do not mistake the jawans in the dress for the Delhi
Police. They are jawans of the Home Guards, a voluntary organisation for
local defence. This time, the Republic Day will have a unique feature,
as Home Guards are participating in the parade after 16 years.

No
‘apna dhan’ for ‘apni beti’Faridabad, January 24The ‘Apni Beti Apna Dhan’
Yojna, a prominent scheme launched for the welfare of the girl child and
women in Haryana, is facing `failure’ in the district due to shortage
of funds. As a result, a large number of beneficiaries are awaiting the
certificate of the fixed deposit of Rs 2,500 the state government was
supposed to have made in the name of the girl child as part of the
scheme.

Milkman
from Anand given lifetime achievement awardNew Delhi, January 24There are no parameters to gauge
courage: acts of bravery stand out and stand tall. Yet, when it comes to
appreciating and applauding those who risk their lives to save others,
it requires no awards, but genuine gratitude. The 10th Red and White
Bravery Awards ceremony that took place in the Capital today had
the Father of White Revolution, Dr Verghese Kurien, being
felicitated for his social service.

Dr V. Kurien, the father of the White Revolution, after receiving the lifetime achievement award in the Capital on Thursday.

NCR BRIEFSPoison mixed
in pond, fish worth Rs 2 lakh killed Faridabad, January 24Fishes worth about Rs 2 lakh were
killed in a pond at Urithal village of Hathin subdivision in the
district yesterday, when someone reportedly mixed poison in the pond
maintained by a contractor.

Jeep overturns

Seminar on cement

Lay-off flayed

The sculpture “Aiming For Excellence” by Amar Nath Sehgal, installed at the DDA Yamuna Sports Complex in the Capital.

Old
age pension enhanced to Rs 300New Delhi, January 24The Government of NCT of Delhi has
enhanced the old age pension to Rs 300 per month. The amendments to the
Delhi Administration Old Age Assistance Rules 1973 enhancing the pension
was notified in the Gazette today.

Crutches,
blankets distributedGurgaon, January 24The Haryana Governor, Mr Babu
Parmanand, distributed crutches, tricycles, sewing machines, blankets,
school bags etc among over 350 person at a programme organised by the
District Red Cross Society at John Hall here today. The Governor lauded
the role of the branches of the Red Cross Society, Child Welfare
Council, Bharatiya Gramin Sangh and voluntary bodies spread all over the
state.

PNB
adopts Bainsi villageRohtak, January 24The Punjab National Bank yesterday
announced that it had adopted Bainsi in the Meham subdivision and it
would develop it as a ‘model village’. The village has a population
of nearly 10,000 and has two high schools, one of them for girls.

‘Today’s
patriotism bad for peace’Faridabad, January 24Dr Lal Singh, senior vice-president
of the Buddhist Society of India and a medical practitioner, flayed the
concept of patriotism preached by various political parties and leaders.

Drug
racket busted, British woman heldNew Delhi, January 24With the arrest of a British
national from Goa, the Delhi zone unit of the Narcotics Control Bureau
today claimed to have busted a racket of drug smuggling from India to
London.

MDU
teachers’ union fears favouritismRohtak, January 24The Maharshi Dayanand University
Teachers’ Association has appealed to the Governor, who is the
Chancellor of the university, to intervene to prevent favouritism in the
matter of giving benefits to teachers under the career advancement
scheme.

ARTSCAPEThe
Shah clan makes an art of story-tellingIN the world of cinema,
flaunting skimpy outfits and showing melodrama that is just short of
scenes, making you cry or smile, can a simple narration of a story has
any significance? Maybe yes. That is what has happened. A well-known
family of three theater personalities has proved it.

A
cornucopia of artistic talent offers a visual treatTHE
last week of the year 2001 saw a spate of activities in the realm of
art. There was ‘Bengal Art, Past and Present’ at Visual Art Gallery
with a host of artists from West Bengal participating in it.
Contemporary West Bengal was sought to be portrayed through widows with
shaven heads; Durga, the goddess of power and energy; domestic affairs
through love, care and the degeneration in values. A visual treat, the
exhibition was an enriching journey to the world of West Bengal today.

A wire work by a student from Mayo
College, Ajmer, exhibited at the IHC.

Cream
of Asian golf for Hero Honda MastersNew Delhi, January 24The cream of Asian golf will
assemble at the DLF Golf and Country Club for the fifth edition of the
Hero Honda Masters, starting on February 14, which will carry an
increased prize purse of US $300,000 this year.

Ujas
Kumar hits 73 in Dronacharya’s victoryNew Delhi, January 24Ujas Kumar cracked a stroke-filled
73 (12x4, 1x6, 77b) to play the star role in Dronacharya Cricket
Foundation’s 35 runs victory against Shakti Club in a limited-over
cricket match played at the Yamuna Vihar Sports Complex. Shakti won the
toss and elected to field, which proved to be an unwise decision, as
Dronacharya utilised their batting might to score 202 in 35.4 overs, and
then restrict Shakti for 167 for 9 in 45 overs.

Municipal
panel opposes fire taxRohtak, January 24The local municipal committee, at
its meeting held here today, opposed the imposition of fire tax in
addition to the house tax on the citizens of the town. The meeting was
presided over by the vice president of the committee, Mr Om Parkash
Bagri.